Now that a COVID-19 vaccine is becoming increasingly available, how can employers encourage employees to receive it? Beyond requiring the shots as a mandatory condition of employment – which is not an option many employers...more
1/27/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employee Incentive Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wellness Programs ,
Workplace Safety
This article addresses many employment-related issues facing employers in the wake of hurricane-related disasters; consequently, in addition to federal laws, we also focus on certain state laws, especially those in the areas...more
8/21/2020
/ Business Closures ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Charitable Donations ,
COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employees ,
Data Privacy ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Force Majeure Clause ,
Foreign Workers ,
Form I-9 ,
H-1B ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Health Plan Sponsors ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
HIPAA Privacy Rule ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hurricane Season ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Labor Relations ,
Medical Leave ,
Military Leave ,
Military Service Members ,
Natural Disasters ,
NLRB ,
OSHA ,
Retirement ,
Retirement Plan ,
Retirement Plan Providers ,
State Labor Laws ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Unemployment Compensation System ,
Unions ,
USCIS ,
USERRA ,
Visa Applications ,
Visas ,
Volunteers ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Injury ,
Workplace Safety
The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division deftly tackled decades of confusion regarding which establishments might have employees meeting the FLSA’s 7(i) overtime exemption for certain commission-paid employees. Even...more
The Department of Labor issued several sets of new guidance materials to employers as return-to-work, remote work, and wage and hour issues remain hot – and sometimes confusing – topics. The agency recognizes that the...more
7/24/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Furloughs ,
Hiring & Firing ,
New Guidance ,
Paid Leave ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Remote Working ,
Return-to-Work Agreements ,
Sick Leave ,
Wage and Hour
As the country begins to re-emerge amid the COVID-19 pandemic, whether and when any particular school will be ready to return for the upcoming school year and at what level will depend on the individual school, its location,...more
5/22/2020
/ Colleges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Health and Safety ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Professors ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Return-to-Work Agreements ,
School Districts ,
School Policies ,
Social Distancing ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
Tuition ,
Universities ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
USDOL’s Wage and Hour Division kicked off the week with an all-in-one maneuver. Approximately a year ago the FLSA’s 7(i) overtime exemption appeared on the regulatory agenda. Without any further notice, USDOL suddenly moved...more
The COVID-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on the workforce, shuttering businesses, prompting mass layoffs, and compelling speedy transitions to remote work. If your company has rushed to implement a temporary...more
The U.S. Department of Labor issued a new rule yesterday to regulate the Families First Coronavirus Relief Act (FFCRA) and the paid leave programs that just became law on April 1, 2020. We’ve digested the 124-page document...more
4/3/2020
/ Business Closures ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
EPSLA ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Healthcare Workers ,
New Rules ,
Paid Leave ,
Rate of Pay ,
Required Documentation ,
Shelter-In-Place ,
Sick Leave ,
Small Business ,
Wage and Hour
The new year has brought many things, including an increased threshold for many employees classified as exempt. The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) provides for limited exemptions from its timekeeping, minimum wage,...more
2/11/2020
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Minimum Salary ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
Over-Time ,
Salaried Employees ,
Timekeeping ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
USDOL has announced a proposed rule intended to clarify the "fluctuating workweek" under the FLSA. This is yet another example of the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) continuing to clean up the mess left by its predecessors....more
The suspense is over – the Department of Labor just this morning announced the revised Overtime Rule, which will set the minimum salary threshold for the Fair Labor Standard Act’s white-collar exemptions at $684 per week, or...more
While stakeholders await final regulations on the white-collar exemptions (a/k/a Overtime Rule 2.0), regular rate, and joint employment, WHD has started sending the White House more proposals – first tackling tips and the tip...more
The comment period for USDOL's most recent proposal regarding the Fair Labor Standards Act's white-collar exemptions (Overtime Rule 2.0) has closed. You probably have heard that the proposed salary level test is "too high"...more
The U.S. Department of Labor issued an opinion letter this week confirming that certain service providers referred through a virtual marketplace company are, indeed, independent contractors for purposes of the federal Fair...more
The USDOL has continued to plow through its regulator agenda. Yesterday it released its proposed guidance regarding the "regular rate" for purposes of calculating FLSA overtime pay. The NPRM is intended to update and clarify...more
The USDOL has proposed to update guidance (for the most part not regulations), regarding the "regular rate" for purposes of calculating FLSA overtime pay. The NPRM is intended to update and clarify the FLSA’s requirements...more
After a year-long pilot, the Department of Labor’s employer-self-audit initiative is apparently here to stay. Which begs the question: should you participate? Let’s look at the most common questions and provide some answers....more
The USDOL's long-awaited proposed white-collar exemption changes a/k/a Overtime Rule 2.0 has been made available. Once it is published in the Federal Register, the public will have 60 days to submit comments regarding, among...more
3/11/2019
/ Comment Period ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Final Rules ,
Minimum Salary ,
Over-Time ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Standard Duties Test ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
This time of year invariably brings questions related to the weather. In Winter Is Coming...So What Should Employers Do To Prepare? you will find a summary of the federal issues likely to arise. Unfortunately you also will...more
This week the U.S. Department of Labor published increases in the civil money penalties (CMPs) it can impose for certain violations of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. These new levels apply to any penalties assessed...more
Some lawmakers have plans to raise the federal Fair Labor Standards Act's minimum wage from $7.25 to $8.55 later this year, then step it up to $15.00 per hour by 2024, and subsequently increase it annually in relation to...more
As of Saturday, the current federal government shutdown became the longest in our nation’s history—and employers are starting to feel the sting. While the peculiarities of the federal budget process meant that this shutdown...more
1/14/2019
/ Anti-Deficiency Act ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
E-Verify ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Employment Litigation ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Federal Budget ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Workers ,
Government Agencies ,
Government Shutdown ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Labor Relations ,
NLRB ,
OSHA ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
Because Congress and the president could not approve a stopgap funding bill by midnight on December 21, the federal government partially shut down, with no compromise in sight. What will this mean for employers across the...more
12/27/2018
/ Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
E-Verify ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Federal Budget ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Government Agencies ,
Government Shutdown ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Labor Relations ,
NLRB ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas
Despite most of the government being occupied with the "shutdown" dilemma, the unaffected USDOL has remained busy and gifted us with two opinion letters on Friday: an enlightening one regarding certain volunteers and a simple...more
If Congress and the president cannot approve a stopgap funding bill by this Friday at midnight, the federal government will shut down. What will this mean for employers across the country? Because of the peculiarities of the...more